This week has gone by more slowly than the last with 13 campers in our group now, a new group dynamic in our bunk. My girls who left to go home were sad to leave, but still have one returning at the 6 week mark. This dynamics that have taken place this week have been a bit trying to witness as a counselor but I am doing my best to maintain a positive attitude when things are difficult. My co-counselor with whom I have grown very close is leaving in 2 weeks because she only has a 6 week contract with the camp so that is going to be very difficult. While we are in many ways opposite, me being a vegetarian and from a cosmopolitan city, and her from a small farm in Iowa, I am so lucky I have had her these last 4 weeks as my other half. She has become one of my closest friends and it will be hard to see her go.
I believe this week I have done a better job of self-care although it went somewhat downhill last week in the stress category when my computer broke, quite literally, on my day off when I usually like to get all my work done and submitted. I spent any free time I had last week trying to call the Lenovo technical people to help me with my computer and then finally convincing my mother to ship my high school laptop across the country. It was a long week but when I finally received a working computer I was ecstatic.
I found last week, that not being able to complete my work by when I had intended had caused me a lot of stress, but I managed to get the work in by Thursday. On the work front, I believe I am doing a good job at accomplishing my goals. I have figured out that instead of taking my block off to rest and nap, that there are days when getting in the gym for just 20 minutes of cardio, is what really gives me more energy for the rest of the day. By taking care of my body and myself I am able to be the best counselor I can be.
I have found I also have my patience tested at times, which of course comes along with being a camp counselor. When I found out my girls were making fun of girls in other bunks for their weight, while attending a weight-loss camp, I had to stop myself from reacting unprofessionally in the moment, step back and approach the girls after. I had to speak to the entire bunk in a calm and rational way about why bullying about weight at a weight-loss camp was not only unacceptable, but something I had trouble comprehending. The majority of the girls in our group wouldn't imagine saying such a thing, but after a walk with the young woman who I heard was doing the bullying, I found out she herself was withdrawn from public school to be home-schooled because of she herself was bullied so much. This was for me, a perfect example of why issues need to be explored in a different context and why therapy is so essential at a camp such as this. CBT and one on one behavior counseling are part of our program here, and by building self-esteem and even self-love, we are empowering these boys and girls to be happier, healthier and even kinder human beings in the long run.
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